A New Purpose
by Kukapetal
Summary: When Captain America and the Red Skull clash once again over the Cosmic Cube, things take a tragic turn.  How do you go on when you've lost everything that gave your life meaning?  Later chapters will contain slash.
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1

**So a few people have expressed interest in reading the other Red Skull story I mentioned at the beginning of "The Meaning of Loyalty," so I finally decided to post it. This story is much older and was written when I was quite a bit younger, so I have had to do a lot of work getting the chapters presentable enough so that I'm comfortable posting them. But here are the first two and I'll clean up the others and post them when I have time.**

**Also, this story does not take place in the same continuity as "The Meaning of Loyalty," because, as I said, I wrote it long before I wrote the other story. I also don't know where it could possibly fit in with Marvel's own continuity. I did my best to avoid any really glaring errors, but Marvel's continuity is very complicated, so I'm sure I made some mistakes. If you notice any that you feel like pointing out, feel free to do so politely via reviews or private messages and I'll see about fixing them.**

**Thanks for reading!**

/ / / / / / / / / / / /

Nick Fury regarded the report that had just been brought to his desk with alarm. It had come from one of his carefully placed agents, hidden deep within the criminal underworld, in this case, a corporation loosely tied with the Red Skull. Not a very important organization, just a small front for supplying weapons and explosives, but it did allow the spy a fair amount of information on where said resources were being funneled…and therefore, where the Skull's interests and future plans of attack might lie.

Now, he couldn't help but feel a terrible misgiving as he went over the document, translated from a complicated cipher by one of his top specialists. The report indicated that the Red Skull seemed to be planning a rather large attack, and the types of weapons and where they were being transported seemed to indicate that the target was an organization that he had clashed with several times in the past.

A.I.M.

The creators of the Cosmic Cube.

Fury sighed as he pushed the paper aside and weighed his options. True, it was possible that there was another reason for the Skull targeting A.I.M, since the organization was hardly limited to manufacturing that single artifact, but if the Skull was going to devote so many resources to a risky attack like that, they had to have something he really wanted. And there was nothing the Red Skull desired more than the Cosmic Cube.

Fury knew he was going to have to plan a counter attack, and soon. The Skull had come into possession of a Cosmic Cube several times during his long history of activity, and each and every time, they had been lucky to defeat him, aided by either flaws in the cube's design, or the Skull's overconfidence. And even with those lucky breaks, the battles had been difficult and risky, and the consequences for failure too terrible to consider. And, of course, there was no guarantee that this cube would contain any flaws, or that the Skull wouldn't have learned from his past mistakes. Their only hope, as far as Fury could see, lay in stopping the Skull before he got his hands on his new toy. And that would mean a swift attack on A.I.M, at the same time, if not before, as the Skull and his forces made their move. A swift attack with the most powerful fighters available. Including the one who knew the Red Skull best.

Nick Fury buzzed his secretary. "Get me Tony Stark on the phone as soon as possible. I have an urgent mission for the Avengers."

/ / / / / / / / / / / / / / /

The Red Skull sat at his desk, gazing contentedly at the reports that he had already read several times. It was undeniable. A.I.M. had been quite busy this past year, and all their activity seemed to be leading up to one thing. The schism in the organization had finally been repaired, and MODOK subdued. As far as the Skull's agents had been able to determine, the giant-headed monstrosity was still alive and being kept heavily sedated with some type of drug A.I.M. had developed specifically for that purpose. They appeared to be keeping him around so they could finally use him for his intended purpose…handling vast quantities of data for their experiments. For one particular project especially…a project that MODOK had been specifically designed for. This, coupled with signs that they were running test experiments with machines designed to handle vast amounts of power, and it was almost plain as day that they were working on the construction of a new Cosmic Cube.

He smiled as he thought of the shining artifact that would soon be waiting for him. He didn't know if A.I.M. were manufacturing the cube for their own use of if they were working for someone, but he supposed it didn't really matter. The cube would be his. He would seize it for himself upon the moment of its completion, and then…then it would all be irrelevant anyway. A.I.M. would tremble at his feet, just as the rest of the world would. He would finally have his hands on what he had been seeking to control for so many years...absolute power. For he knew that this cube would give it to him. It would be perfect, unlike the others he had tried to make use of in the past. With MODOK fully under control and focusing his energy on handling the data for the cube, there would be no flaws this time. Everything would be perfect.

He couldn't help but feel a familiar prickle of excitement at the thought of the day when the cube would be completed and he and his men would storm the facility and take it. He was sure the battle would be a fierce one, and he didn't think that fierceness was going to come from the A.I.M. agents they would certainly be fighting. No, he had a feeling a certain someone else was going to show up to make things difficult.

His smile grew as he thought of it. "You will show up, won't you, Old Enemy?" He was no fool, and he knew that others would surely have their eyes on A.I.M.'s activities. Members of one underground organization could barely go out to pick up the morning newspaper without members of every other underground organization paying careful attention. It was the nature of things in this city, where the underworld was packed so thickly with criminals vying for their spot in the pecking order that they resembles vultures gathered around a fresh carcass on the savanna. Others would likely suspect A.I.M. was up to something….and that included opponents on the right side of the law as well. The Red Skull knew Nick Fury would get wind of what was going down, and that meant that the Avengers were bound to show up to put a stop to both A.I.M.'s and the Skull's plans.

"You always show up to thwart me, don't you, Captain?" the Skull muttered to himself. And yet strangely, there was no anger or frustration in his tone. No, he had long since come to terms with the inevitability of it all. He sought power, and Captain America sought to take that power away from him. It was the nature of things. It was the entire driving force behind both of their existences. It was such a constant, such an absolute, that the Skull always factored that possibility into his plans. As such, he was rarely caught by surprise anymore. He knew Captain America would show up to try and stop him from gaining the cube, just as he knew the sun would rise in the east tomorrow morning.

"I'll be ready for you, Captain," he said softly to himself, finally pushing the reports aside and taking a sip of his coffee, which had long since gone cold. He drank it anyway, staring out the window at the city below, thinking of the prize that lay waiting for him and the obstacles that would stand in the way of him reaching it.

"The stakes this time are very high indeed, aren't they Rogers?" he said, taking another sip of the lukewarm coffee. "That means the battle will be a fierce one. But I'll be ready for you. I always am. In a way….I'm almost looking forward to this."

He smiled again and sipped his coffee as he stared out the window at the world he would soon own.

/ / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / /

Steve Rogers sighed quietly to himself. He had just gotten the news from Tony Stark, and he was far from happy about it. Of course, he knew that he and the Red Skull would clash again. That was inevitable, so long as the Red Skull lived. But knowing that the Cosmic Cube would also be a part of the equation filled him with a terrible dread. He knew just how vicious the Skull could be when he held power like that. He had seen it firsthand. Enslaving his enemies, torturing cities full of people for his own amusement, bringing the armies of the Third Reich down upon Washington D.C.…there had been no end to his depravity. Now, he had the chance to get his hands on power like that once again, and Steve had no doubt he would take it.

He shuddered as he thought of the countless people who would suffer at the Red Skull's hands. He couldn't let that come to pass. He knew that the Red Skull would stop at nothing to get his hands on his prize. But he, Captain America, would also stop at nothing to make sure the Red Skull never claimed it.

"You won't get a chance to make another innocent person suffer, Skull," he said softly to himself. "I'll be there to stop you. I always am. And no matter how hard you fight, know that I will always fight harder."

Steve Rogers stared out the window and dreaded the ugly battle he knew lay ahead of him.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

Red Skull's eyes narrowed as he stared out at the "abandoned" metalworking facility that A.I.M. had been tracked to. All his intelligence sources claimed that this night would be the night. The night when A.I.M. finally made their attempt to create a perfect, fully powered Cosmic Cube.

"What d'ya think, Boss?" came Crossbones's voice to the right of him.

Red Skull turned and glanced at his right-hand man. The young man was staring out at the factory with a hunger that Skull almost thought matched his own. Crossbones's hunger was not for power, however. He craved combat, pure and simple. Still, despite his eagerness, the Skull was certain that the man would not be reckless. He was amazingly disciplined and just as eager to please. Red Skull knew that whatever task he entrusted his henchman to carry out, would be completed to his satisfaction.

"Not quite yet, Crossbones," Skull finally answered him. "I don't want your team making a move until we know the other two are in position."

Crossbones merely nodded and went back to looking out at the factory. Ever the obedient wolfhound. His finger touched the button on the walkie-talkie he held, waiting for the signal from one or both of the other teams. Once one team had positioned itself underground, ready to come up into the facility from the basement, and the other had positioned itself on the roof, ready to break through the windows on the upper levels, Crossbones's team would be ready to assault the ground level.

Then all that would be left would be to wait for the signal from Machinesmith. He had been put in charge of monitoring the power levels emanating from the building. He would tell them when the output reached maximum levels. That would mean that the manufacturing process was in full swing. The Red Skull knew that he and his men could not attack before that time. To do so meant risking A.I.M. shutting down the process before the cube was completed. Attacking at the peak of the manufacturing process, however, meant that not only could A.I.M. not shut down the process, but the maximum number of their resources would be diverted to monitoring the task. It would be the perfect time to attack.

"Boss?" came Crossbones's voice from beside him.

"Yes, Crossbones?" Skull said, not even bothering to glance over at his henchman. He remained staring at the factory. He could almost FEEL the power inside, waiting for him.

"The other two teams are in position," Crossbones told him. "All that's left is for you to give us the signal."

The Red Skull started to nod in reply, when he suddenly felt a surge of power so great that it stole his breath and made every hair on his body stand up. Crossbones was similarly affected, almost dropping the walkie-talkie with a curse. The two of them could hear several of the other team members shouting n surprise as the lights in every building in sight dimmed.

The walkie-talkie that the Red Skull was holding crackled to life, but by that point, the Red Skull no longer needed the Machinesmith to tell him what he had already figured out for himself.

"Go!" he shouted to Crossbones.

His right-hand man took off immediately, shouting something into his walkie-talkie as he ran, no doubt telling the other two teams to begin their own attacks. Soon Crossbones and his team had disappeared from sight as they split up into smaller groups and disappeared into the various doors leading into the factory.

Red Skull smiled as he heard the sound of gunfire coming from inside A.I.M.'s hideout. The sounds of the various firefights were scattered and brief, which meant that his men were not meeting with much resistance. With luck, they would take A.I.M. almost completely by surprise, and resistance would be minimal. With luck, the fight would be concluded within the hour. And once it had been concluded, Crossbones would let him know via walkie-talkie. Then, the Red Skull could enter A.I.M.'s hideout safely and take what was his.

Just as he had anticipated, it wasn't more than twenty minutes later that his walkie-talkie crackled once more, a voice on the other end telling him that all was clear. But to his surprise, the voice he heard wasn't Crossbones's, but instead the voice of one of Crossbones's direct subordinates, a weasely blond man named Gunther.

"Herr Skull, the battle is over. You can enter through the North Maintenance Entrance," came Gunther's voice. "We've got that area covered and it should be safe for you to come in."

Red Skull regarded the walkie-talkie with misgiving. Although this was certainly good news, he couldn't help but be wary of the fact that it wasn't Crossbones on the other end of the transmission. Even the slightest deviation from the plan was cause for alarm when so much was at stake.

"Where is Crossbones?" was all Red Skull said in reply.

"Wounded," Gunther said in a quavering voice. "He was hit in the chest during the battle. He's still alive for now, but he can't talk."

The Skull couldn't help but feel a touch of irritation at the news. Crossbones was one of his most loyal and valuable men. If he died, he would be difficult to replace.

Still, it was a minor inconvenience at worst. The battle was won and the way to the cube was clear. Soon, the Ultimate Power would be in his hands, and henchmen would become unnecessary.

"Do what you can for him," Red Skull told Gunther. "And make sure you cover the North Entrance like you said. I'm on my way in."

He stuck the walkie-talkie into his belt and drew his gun, then motioned for the small squad of men who had remained with him to follow him. The henchmen spread out as they moved, some moving protectively in front of him, others flanking him, a few bringing up the rear, all of them making sure no enemy could get near him. The group of them soon reached the entrance Gunther had directed them to, and the two henchmen in front of Red Skull threw the door open and entered, weapons drawn.

Red Skull hurried impatiently up the stairs leading to the door, wondering if the cube had actually been completed in the time it took for them to secure the factory. If it hadn't been, that might prove to be problematic, as it would mean they would have to keep some of the A.I.M. scientists alive and force them for help complete it. And who knew how they might tinker with the cube's makeup while being forced to complete it? They might sabotage it and leave a flaw that wouldn't be detectable until it was-

A scream from one of the henchmen ahead of him stopped the Red Skull in his tracks. He heard the sound of gunfire from inside the door and then the thud of someone falling to the floor.

Cursing himself for letting his eagerness distract him, Red Skull brandished his gun protectively in front of him and turned to motion to the rest of his henchman to withdraw. The North Entrance had obviously been compromised since he had last spoken with Gunther and they needed to get back to an area with more cover before they figured out what to do next.

Before hew could even finish turning around, however, he heard a scream from off to his left. A second later there was the sound of a gunshot, and then one of the henchmen fell. And the Skull saw familiar yellow garbed figures wearing cylindrical helmets appear from around the corner, all of them with their guns drawn and aimed directly at him.

Reacting quickly, he dashed up the steps and dove inside the open doorway, just as the A.I.M. soldiers opened fire on the rest of the henchmen. As soon as he was inside the doorway, he threw himself to the floor, knowing there were likely A.I.M. soldiers waiting for him in here as well. There was a flash in the darkness and the roar of a gunshot and an instant later he felt a bullet whiz by overhead, right where he had been standing a moment ago. He twisted his body toward where the gunshot had come from and saw a yellow-clad figure in the darkness. He raised his gun and took aim at the soldier, but before he could fire, he heard the sound of footsteps coming from behind him. He tried to turn toward the sound of the new threat, but before he could move, he felt a foot connect with the back of his head, throwing him forward and smacking his face hard against the concrete floor.

He grunted in pain and swallowed a curse as the gun flew out of his hands and clattered off into the darkness. He tried to turn around to face the new threat, but soon realized he was surrounded on all sides by the strange-helmeted A.I.M. soldiers. Two of them tackled him and pinned his arms behind him. He snarled and summoned all his Super Soldier serum fueled strength as he tried to throw them off of him. For a moment it felt like he might succeed, but then he felt more of them seize him and force him roughly back to the floor. And struggle as he might, there were simply too many of them to fight off.

"We knew you would come, fool," one of them said to him with a mocking chuckle.

Then he felt something hit him hard in the back of the head and all the rest was swallowed up by blackness.

/ / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / /

He was awakened sometime later by a stinging backhand to the side of the face. Opening his eyes in surprise, he found himself chained to a chair in a huge, brightly lit room that was probably the main floor of the factory. In front of him was a tall man in a yellow, three piece suit. He wore a cloth mask of the same color, hiding his identity, but Red Skull didn't need to know who he was to know his role in the organization. He had to be the chairman of A.I.M.'s Board of Directors.

"I'm so glad you could join us, Red Skull," the Chairman said with a grin. "Especially since I assume you are as eager to see this particular project completed as we are. I'm sorry we couldn't provide more comfortable accommodations," he went on, gesturing to the chair the Skull was chained to, "but we couldn't be certain that you would behave yourself, and it wouldn't do to have you interfering with the process. The cube is a sensitive device, as I'm sure you well know."

Red Skull ignored the man's gloating, struggling against the chains binding him to the chair instead, while discretely taking in his surroundings at the same time. The huge, brightly lit space surrounding them was filled with all manner of machines and electrical devices, most of which were whirring and humming with power, the heat coming off of them making the space they were in feel uncomfortably warm. Technicians in the typical cylindrical helmets and yellow jumpsuits manned most of the machines, seemingly keeping tabs in their status or output. It was certainly an elaborate setup, something that rivaled the advanced technology he had seen in Zola's laboratory, but right now, the Skull barely noticed any of it. No, right now, his attention was taken up with the sight right in front of him.

Immediately behind the Chairman, a single, pillar-shaped containment unit loomed. The pillar was clear, looking like smooth glass, although the Skull suspected it was made of something much stronger. Inside, bright blue bolts of pure energy crackled up and down the column, growing brighter and more numerous the longer the Skull looked at them. And at the top of the pillar was a four-pronged metal stand of some sort, covered by a dome of the same glasslike substance.

It was empty.

Surprised, Red Skull looked a silent question at the A.I.M. chairman, only to be laughed at in return.

"Yes, I'm afraid it's not quite ready yet," the man said with a grin. "Are you disappointed?"

"But…the power surge…I was sure," Red Skull found himself stammering, before catching himself and shooting an ugly look at the Chairman. "You tricked me!"

The man gave him a smug look Skull swore he would severely pay for later. "Yes, and it was surprisingly easy, too. Did you really think we weren't expecting you? We knew you'd sniff the cube out like a hound after a rabbit. All we needed was to simulate the cube's production with a staged power surge to make you and your men attack early. Once inside, we were waiting for you." He laughed. "I'm not sure a single man of yours is left alive…except for perhaps that oafish henchman of yours. I haven't yet been able to confirm his death. Don't get your hopes up though," the Chairman added. "The team he was with was liquidated. I'm sure he couldn't have escaped."

"Gunther said he was shot in the chest," Red Skull muttered, although he wasn't sure if he should believe anything he'd been told about the earlier battle. Still, it wouldn't hurt if the A.I.M. Chairman believed it. If Crossbones HAD somehow managed to escape, it would be better if their enemies thought he was dead. For now.

"Ah, yes, Gunther!" the Chairman said, eyes glinting with amusement. "I do believe he would have said anything at that point, given where we had the knife. He died like a coward in the end…just like all the rest of your followers."

"Yes, well, enjoy your victory now, because it's going to be short-lived!" the Skull snarled at the man, not really knowing how he was actually going to get himself out of this mess, but too proud to let anyone else know that. "Do you really think these chains can hold me?"

"They can, or you'd have escaped from them long before this," the Chairman replied, shooting a glance over at the technicians who were fiddling with the various machines off to the right. "They're made of an alloy we created ourselves…one that should withstand even a Super Soldier's strength. Hardly an important invention, in the grand scheme of things, but they serve their purpose, don't they?"

"Why are you doing this?" Red Skull spat at the man. "To what end? Are you keeping me alive merely to gloat?"

"Would you prefer we killed you?" said the Chairman. "When you have the opportunity to witness the creation of the one thing you want most in the world?"

"Spare me your false generosity," Red Skull replied with a snarl. "We both know that's not why you're keeping me alive like this! You must have a true reason!"

The Chairman chuckled again. "Maybe you haven't gotten as stupid in your old age as I originally thought. Very well, if you must know, you are a…gift."

"A _what_?" Skull snapped, straining uselessly at the chains once more. He knew the action was futile, but humiliation drowned out all rational thought for a moment, leaving behind only rage.

"I told you before that you can't get out of those," the chairman said with a laugh. He stepped closer to the Red Skull, leaning down so their faces were only inches from one another. "And yes, you are a present. For the person who financed this project. He has a rather strong dislike of you, and was quite adamant about us taking you alive. I'm assuming that once he has the Cube, he'll want you as a servant…or a footstool."

For a brief moment, curiosity overcame even the Skull's rage. So A.I.M. _was _working with someone else. But who? The fact that whoever it was wanted him for a prisoner told him nothing, since he had run afoul of practically every major criminal, terrorist and tyrant in the world during his long career. Practically anyone he had crossed would want to see him suffer. Then again, anyone he had tangled with in the past was unlikely to have much love for A.I.M. either. Which raised an important question…

"And how do you know that he won't use YOU for a footstool once he obtains the cube?" Skull asked the Chairman. "Once he has all that power, there will be no need to treat you as his equals. Have you learned nothing from the time _I_ took the cube from you?"

"On the contrary, we have learned everything," the Chairman said smoothly. "We have certain….failsafe measures in place to prevent even a hint of treachery. It is amazing what we can do with the technology now that we have MODOK firmly under control. Speaking of which," the Chairman turned and glanced at what looked like a giant metal safe at the far corner of the room. There was a single darkened window in the door of this containment unit, and various tubes and wires protruded from the back. "I think he should have managed all the data we're going to need by now. Shall we begin?" He smiled.

"Don't act like I have some sort of say in the matter," Red Skull growled at the man.

"I'm just trying to be…inclusive," the Chairman said with a laugh, before gesturing to the scientists working on the other side of the room.

There was a flurry of activity from that side of the room as controls were turned on, buttons pressed, levers pulled, and machinery started. Then, Red Skull began to feel a crackling in the air that made the one he'd felt before the attack seem like a static shock gotten from an old carpet.

Even the Chairman seemed taken aback by the power that was suddenly surging through the room…and up into the crystalline column. He sucked in his breath, seemingly delighted and terrified at the same time.

"Do you feel it?" he said in a shaking voice, although Red Skull wasn't sure if the man was addressing him or talking to himself. "It's….amazing. I've never felt such power. The time for it to be given physical form is almost at hand."

And sure enough, at the top of the column, in the middle of the four-pronged stand, Red Skull could faintly make out the outline of a cube.

And then something off to his left caught his eye. And all at once, the Skull felt himself relax slightly as he allowed himself a small glimmer of hope. The sight was something that was so extremely fortuitous and yet, so utterly _expected_, that he couldn't help grinning.

The Chairman turned back to him, and seemed startled by his smile. "What are you so happy about?" the man said, a trifle grouchily. "Don't think for a second that you'll ever get your hands on the cube. What you see there in that column is the instrument of your subjugation, if not your death. You'll never possess the power for yourself!"

"And you won't either!" a voice shouted, as a circular shield came flying through the air toward the Chairman. The Chairman let out a squawk as he turned and saw the shield flying toward him, but it was much to late for him to get out of the way.

As the shield flattened him, a red, white, and blue figure leapt out of the shadows and charged toward the fallen man.

"You won't harm a single person with that cube! We won't even let you complete it!" shouted Captain America. "Avengers, attack!"


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

**Did I mention that I don't own any of these characters? Well I don't. Marvel does :P **

Immediately, the din of battle surrounded them all as the various A.I.M. scientists dropped what they were doing and opened fire on the attacking Avengers. Red Skull heard the rushing sound of something large passing overhead and ducked instinctively, although it was too high up to pose a threat. A second later there was a loud crash and more shouting from the scientists, so he assumed it probably had been Rogers's shield again or perhaps Thor's hammer. The shouting of the scientists gave way to the sound of more gunfire as they returned fire, and Red Skull soon felt hideously vulnerable sitting helplessly out in the open. He started struggling again, rocking the chair sideways, not trying to escape but instead to tip it over. Although he would still be unable to move, if the chair were at least lying on its side, he would be less exposed to the gunfire going on all around.

A final push sent the chair tipping sideways, and he winced at the inevitable collision with the ground that would result, a collision he didn't even have a free hand to try and protect himself from. But to his surprise, it never came. Instead, the chair stopped its descent halfway, causing him to yelp with surprise.

"It's only me, Boss," came Crossbones's voice behind him. "Hang, on, I'll getcha out of this in a second."

"Where were you?" Red Skull snapped at him, relieved to have someone to be irritated with besides himself. "I've been sitting down here for ages!"

"Sorry," his henchman apologized, sounding slightly sheepish. "The whole group of soldiers I was with got surprised in a hallway. I barely escaped with my skin. It took me a while to lose them. Had to hide inside some kind of steam vent for a while. Then, just as I was getting out to go look for you, I ran into the cavalry here," Crossbones went on, gesturing toward where Thor and Ironman were fighting off a group of A.I.M. soldiers. "It took me a bit of explaining to keep 'em from capturing me, but they were willing to let me work with them to get down here and attack. I know it's a bit unorthodox, teaming up with our enemies and all, but I never would have been able to get in here and rescue you on my own. This room was way too heavily guarded for me to just barge in, and you were too out in the open for me to be able to sneak in, so-"

"Just get me out of this chair!" Red Skull snarled at him. "I don't have time for you to give me every little detail!"

"Oh, right!" Crossbones said immediately, and seized the chains in both hands. He grunted as he started struggling to break them. 

"No, you buffoon!" Skull snapped. "The chains are made of some special alloy. They were impossible for me to break! If I can't break them, you can't either!"

"Shit!" Crossbones muttered under his breath. "Well, we've gotta get you out of them somehow…"

"Just get me out of the path of the battle!" The Skull ordered. "We can figure out what to do once I don't have bullets flying at me from every direction!"

"No, wait, I've got it!" Crossbones told him. "Hold still!"

Red Skull opened his mouth to protest. But shut it quickly again as he felt Crossbones press against both sides of the chair back. The chair creaked as the back of it bowed outwards, and Skull suddenly felt his chains loosen as the chair back was reduced to almost half its width.

"There we go," Crossbones said, pulling the chains over Red Skull's head. As soon as he was free, Red Skull got up and Crossbones handed him one of his guns. "I suggest we beat a hasty retreat before someone notices us over here and tries to stop us."

"No!" Red Skull told him. "We aren't leaving until I get my hands on that cube! With everyone else distracted by the battle, it will be the perfect time to take it!"

"But it ain't finished!" Crossbones protested.

"It will be," Skull said quietly, looking toward the crystalline column. Sure enough, the energy was still crackling upwards toward the cube, and the outline of the cube itself had become more distinct since he had last looked at it. "I knew the process wouldn't be able to be interrupted once it started. Look over there!" he said, pointing toward the various machines on the other side of the room. A handful of A.I.M. scientists were still frantically maintaining them, even as their comrades battled the Avengers all around them.

"Cappy and his buddies will probably stop them," Crossbones told him. "And then what'll we do? I don't think we want to be around when they finish up with A.I.M. and start paying attention to us. There're only two of us, and I don't think we'll stand much of a chance. Better to lose out on the Cube this time than to get caught. We gotta get out of here while there's still time, Boss."

"You aren't going anywhere!" Skull suddenly heard the Chairman shout. He whirled around and saw that the man had finally gotten back to his feet and now had a gun aimed at the pair of them. "The Baron insisted that you were to be part of the deal and I'll make sure he gets you!"

_Baron? _Red Skull had only an instant to wonder who the Chairman could be talking about. A second later he hit the floor hard as Crossbones shoved him out of the way and then started firing at the Chairman. Skull heard the roar of the Chairman's gun as he returned fire, then the sound of Crossbones shouting in frustration. Looking up, he saw the Chairman dart behind a large machine that had eight prominent red lights on its display panel, red lights that were flickering weakly right now, but seemed to be getting brighter and more constant the longer Skull looked at them. A nearby A.I.M. scientist shouted at the Chairman to get away from it, but the man paid him no heed, his concern only with getting away from Crossbones.

"Get back here!" Crossbones snarled at the Chairman, starting toward him.

Glad that both of them were preoccupied for the moment, Red Skull left them to their battle and turned his attention back to the Cosmic Cube. It had grown even more distinct since he had last looked at it, and almost seemed solid now. The energy was shooting up the column at an extremely rapid pace, and the entire column was beginning to vibrate. It wouldn't be much longer. He could almost feel the cube in his hand, waiting for him to re-shape the world in his own image. He took an eager step toward the column.

"Don't you move another step toward that thing!" shouted a woman's voice from behind him.

He turned around, gun raised, and saw Sharon Carter standing about ten feet away from him, her own gun aimed at his chest. "I said don't move!" she shouted again.

He gave her an amused grin. "Don't tell me _you've_ joined the Avengers, you silly chit. Can't you let Rogers work without constantly latching onto his leg, you utter nuisance?"

Her eyes narrowed slightly, but she refused to be baited by his remarks. "The Avengers aren't the only ones here, you know. Or are you so focused on the cube that you haven't been paying attention to what's going on all around you?"

He almost balked in surprise, but caught himself before he looked like a fool. He forced himself to re-examine his surroundings with a detached expression, as if he had expected to see the Shield agents pouring into the room all along. In fact, the room was much more crowded than it had been when the battle started. Not only had the Shield soldiers joined in the fight, but he could see that more A.I.M. soldiers had entered the room, as well as some men in purple, military style uniforms with red armbands. He didn't recognize these last soldiers, but they seemed to be aiding the A.I.M. soldiers, so he assumed they were allies of some sort. He looked back at Sharon Carter with a raised eyebrow.

"Of course I saw them, you fool woman," he lied, giving her a smirk. "But they, and you, are inconsequential. Once I have the cube, you will all bow before me!"

"Which is why I'm not letting you take another step toward it," she replied, cocking her gun for emphasis.

"As if you could stop me," he replied, allowing himself to show a touch of amusement. "What will you do if I move? Kill me? You know he'll never forgive you if you do." He clucked his tongue at her. "Sharon, Sharon, we both know you lack the resolve to follow your sense of duty over your heart."

He saw her flinch slightly, as if his words had touched a nerve. It was a momentary distraction, but it was all he needed. He fired.

She saw it coming at the last second and managed to dodge sideways so the bullet only grazed her arm. The shock forced her to drop her gun anyway, and he lunged for it. He managed to grab ahold of it just as she recovered and threw herself at him. He sent her flying backwards with a kick and leapt to his feet, now holding two guns. He stuck Sharon's into his belt and then turned toward the crystalline column once again. It was still humming with power and he still saw the bluish bolts of electricity traveling up the column toward the cube, but the cube itself now looked completely solid.

Was it finished?

It glowed with a blinding white light he remembered all too well. He ached to touch it, craved it as an alcoholic might crave a full bottle. It was so close to him…so close, and yet, if he didn't act now, the overwhelming number of enemies in the room might make it impossible for him to actually reach it.

He moved.

He reached the crystal column in only a few short steps and placed his hands on it, wondering how he would get at the cube inside. The column not only looked like glass, it felt like it as well, but he still doubted it actually _was _glass. Still, he supposed there was only one way to find out. He looked at the gun he still held in his hand. Perhaps a bullet or two would break open the column and allow him to access the cube within. He raised the weapon.

"Skull, STOP!" came familiar voice, and he smiled as he turned toward it and saw his nemesis charging toward him. Their eyes met for only a moment, Red Skull's pleased, Captain America's determined, before Rogers raised his shield and flung it at him.

Since he had seen the blow coming, he had plenty of time to duck around the side of the column and out of harm's way. He felt the shield _whoosh _by him, and then heard a loud CLANG as it ricocheted off something on the other side of the room.

He spared a quick glance in that direction and saw that the shield had hit the door of the huge containment unit that he assumed held MODOK. He shook his head and turned back toward Rogers with a mocking expression.

"You should be more careful, fool!" he chucked at his adversary. "Do you really want MODOK joining us out here? I've heard he has a most unpleasant disposition!"

"It can't be worse than yours, Skull!" Captain America shouted as he caught the returning shield. "And you're the one I'm more worried about! I won't let you take that cube!"

"Yes, well, you certainly took your time stopping me," Red Skull said testily. "I still can't believe you sent your woman after me instead of coming yourself. I was almost insulted!" He fired at the man before ducking back behind the column.

Captain America blocked the shot with his shield and then lunged around the side of the column after him. Skull fired again and then ducked back around the other side. The two of them repeated the movements several times, looking like two children playing some ridiculous game of Cops and Robbers. Then, just as Red Skull was preparing to fire at Captain America again, he heard a shout on the other side of the room.

"Boss, look out!" he heard Crossbones yell.

Focused as he was on Captain America, Red Skull couldn't afford to look over at Crossbones to see whatever he was shouting about. Instead, he threw himself to the floor, dragging himself behind the column on hands and knees, just as he heard several bullets bounce off Rogers's shield.

"Get away from the cube!" the Chairman shouted, raising his gun again. "Don't touch it! It's unstable! You can't take it out of the containment column!"

"That's enough out of you!" Crossbones snarled, jumping out from behind a piece of equipment and seizing the Chairman's arm, directing his shot harmlessly toward the ceiling. Then, he savagely squeezed the man's wrist, forcing him to drop the gun with a cry of pain. No sooner had the gun hit the floor than Crossbones hurled the man at a nearby control panel. There was a surprisingly loud THUD as the chairman hit the piece of equipment, striking his head on a corner of it. He fell to the floor, twitched once, and was still.

Crossbones looked away from the Chairman and back toward Red Skull. "You okay, Boss?" his henchman called. I think he's…" Whatever else Crossbones had been going to say trailed off as his eyes widened in surprise. "Holy shit, look out, Boss!"

Another loud THUNK, identical to the one Skull thought had been made by the Chairman hitting the machine, suddenly came from behind him. Red Skull whirled in that direction, gun raised, and saw the huge containment safe that held MODOK suddenly shake violently. The metal door bowed outward, its broken hinge creaking.

"NO!" he heard an A.I.M. soldier shout. "The cube isn't ready yet!"

"_Forget _the cube!" a shield agent shouted. "If that thing gets out of there, we're fucked!"

"No, you don't understand!" another A.I.M. soldier started to say, but he was drowned out by another crash against the door of the containment unit.

"Steve!" Red Skull suddenly heard Sharon Carter shout from behind them. He turned to see her running toward them, a bloody cloth wrapped around one arm. "Steve, what happened?"

"My shield hit the door of that thing and broke one of the hinges," Rogers replied, looking horrified. "This is my fault…"

"Never mind whose fault it is!" Red Skull snapped at them. "How do we keep that thing from getting out of-?" The question became irrelevant when MODOK crashed against the door a final time and knocked it clean off its hinges.

"NO!" shouted an A.I.M. scientist. "DON'T LET HIM GET OUT!"

But it was far too late. The door fell forward and then the huge-headed grotesquery fell out after it. He didn't come flying out in his hoverchair, as Red Skull would have expected, ready to strike them all down with his psionic beams, but rather collapsed forward and landed in a heap just outside the doorway. His huge, intelligent eyes were clouded and pained, and he barely seemed aware of his surroundings. He seemed to focus only on one thing….moving forward. As his hoverchair sputtered and struggled to push him forward, Red Skull saw a series of wires and tubes come out of the huge safe after him. All of them were connected directly to the back of his skull, and seemed to pain him terribly.

As everyone watched in horror, the wretched creature gave a final push forward and the tubes and wires ripped free from his head, falling to the floor and leaking some sort of viscous blue fluid.

And all at once, the vibrations from the crystalline column behind Red Skull changed in pitch; became higher and louder and more powerful. As Red Skull looked back towards the cube, he saw it begin to emit an intense blue light, one that was the same color as the bolts of energy that had been flowing up the column all this time. As everyone in the room looked on in horror, one of these same bolts suddenly shot out from the cube and crashed against the transparent dome that was covering the artifact.

"NO!" shouted one of the A.I.M. scientists once more. "No, it wasn't finished! Now it's unstable! What have to done, you fools?"

Red Skull took a step backwards, wondering if it was too late to take Crossbones up on his offer and "beat a hasty retreat," as he said. The cube was a lost cause, and, if the sheer amount of energy he could feel pressing out against the transparent column was anything to go by, a ticking time bomb as well.

As if confirming his suspicions, the vibrations reached an earsplitting pitch and the column shook violently. Red Skull was nearly thrown off his feet as the entire room was rocked by the pulse of energy.

"We've got to get out of here fast!" Rogers said. "This entire factory's going to explode!"

"Just the factory?" one of the scientists said grimly. "We should all be so lucky! Don't you realize how much power is at play here? When the cube explodes, it'll take out half the city! There's no escaping for anyone!"

"Half the city?" Captain America said in horror. "No! We can't let that happen! There must be a way to stop it!"

"There _was_ one," the scientist replied, shaking his head in dismay. "There is a massive quantity of explosives underneath this factory. It was going to be our last resort if things went wrong. Take out this entire place before the cube could reach its critical "meltdown point," as it were. But…there's no way to use that now."

"Why not?" Sharon Carter shouted at the man. "Aren't they still there? Why can't detonate them?"

"Because," the scientist said ruefully, looking at the Chairman's dead body. "The Chairman was the only one who had the code for the explosives. And so," he said, looking back up at them grimly. "We are doomed. And so is most of New York."


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

There was a brief, horrified silence as the scientist's words sank in. Even Red Skull found himself silent, his mind struggling to accept the idea of his approaching death right there, in that very room, possibly within minutes. Then, he heard Rogers speak.

"There has to be a way to stop it!" he said, and Red Skull turned around to see that his enemy had gone over to the cluster of surviving A.I.M. scientists on the other side of the room. "Can't we take the cube out of there and take it out of the city? We could throw it into the ocean! There has to be enough time for that. Tony, you could fly it there within minutes!" he said to Ironman, who was just landing beside him.

"No, you just don't understand!" the scientist started to say, but he was drowned out by what sounded like a loud thunderclap. Everyone looked at the cube, expecting it to explode,, but after spraying electricity violently against the inside of the containment column, the cube settled back into its agitated vibrating.

"Well, maybe you should explain it to us then!" Ironman snapped at the scientist. He gave a quick glance over at the cube, whose humming was beginning to increase in pitch once more. "Quickly, if possible!"

The scientist looked at the metal-suited Avenger as if he were a lost cause, but apparently decided he had nothing to lose by explaining the situation. "The cube was always meant to be unstable," he said, with a shake of his head.

"What?" Red Skull said, looking at the scientist as if he were crazy. "You _meant_ for it to explode?"

"No!" the scientist protested. "We meant for the cube to be too dangerous for anyone to hold! It was supposed to be how the Board of Directors and our financial sponsor made sure that no one could betray any of the others! The cube is too dangerous to touch, and will vaporize anyone who tries it! That's why we have to keep it within the containment pillar!"

"And how, may I ask, were you planning on using it?" Thor asked, coming over to join the others in front of the scientist.

The man looked over at the large piece of machinery with the eight flickering lights. "With this device. It was supposed to make eight "control cubes," one for each member of the Board of Directors, and one for the Baron. When all seven of them held the control cubes, they could access the Cosmic Cube's power, so long as they agreed upon what action they were going to perform."

"None of which explains why the cube is about to explode!" Ironman cut in. "If it's in the containment pillar, why is it about to explode and destroy the city?"

"Because you let MODOK out too early!" the scientist snapped, looking over at the fallen, giant-headed wretch. "He was supposed to be handling all the data for the cube, but he broke the connection before it was finished. Normally, this just would have resulted in a cube that didn't work as well, but since what we were trying was so experimental, and the cube was already so unstable-"

"You've created a miniature nuclear bomb," Rogers finished for him, shaking his head in dismay.

The scientist nodded miserably. "Don't you see? You can't pick up the cube and take it away from here, even if there was time! You couldn't even pick up the pillar, because it's so unstable now that the movement would probably set it off! We're doomed!"

"Then we have to destroy it here!" Ironman said. There has to be a way to access the controls for the explosives! Even without the password, there's got to be a way into the system!"

The scientist started to reply, but he was drowned out by another earsplitting power discharge from the Cosmic Cube. Skull cringed when he looked over and saw a large crack forming in the side of the pillar.

"There's no time!" Red Skull said, pointing to the damaged pillar. "Look! You'd never be able to hack into the system before that thing fails!"

"'Chiney could," Red Skull heard Crossbones say hesitantly.

He turned around to face his henchman, making no effort to hide his surprise this time. Of course! Machinesmith could access any electronic device easily. He would be able to hack into the system much more quickly than a normal human could, and would be able to bypass any password system with ease. "The just might work!" he said, surprised Crossbones thought of the idea before he himself did.

"What might work?" he heard Rogers say. Red Skull turned toward him and saw his enemy was regarding him with both skepticism and a touch of hope. "If you have a plan, now's the time to share it."

"I gave the leaders of all my combat teams a small device they could use to bypass any security system they might encounter when they attacked this place," Red Skull explained, figuring there was no need to keep his rival in the dark. They were all fighting for the same goal, right now, and that was survival. "Attach it to an electrical device, and Machinesmith would be able to access it from his location back at my headquarters. It was supposed to be for disabling the security systems quickly, but Crossbones is right that it could also be used to bypass the password system for the explosives."

"It's worth a try!" Rogers replied. He looked over at the scientists. "Where do we find the computer that activates the explosives?"

One of the scientists pointed to a door on the far side of the room, one that looked like it led to a stairwell. "Down those stairs, to the end of the hallway at the bottom of them, and then turn right. There will be a sliding metal door that leads to a bunker. You'll be protected from the blast in there, and the computer is inside!"

"All right," said Captain America. "Let's get down there as fast as we can. The rest of you should evacuate the building immediately!"

"Steve, wait!" Sharon Carter said, eyeing Red Skull and Crossbones with misgiving. I don't trust them. Are you sure-?"

"Do you really think I'd let myself be blown to pieces just for a chance to double-cross Rogers, you fool woman?" Skull snapped at her in exasperation. "Stop wasting time!"

Rogers shook his head. "I don't trust them either, but this sounds like the only chance we've got. We have to take it."

"We have to hurry too!" said Wasp, pointing over at the pillar. "Look!"

Red Skull realized with dismay that he could actually _see _the crack in the column widening. Even worse, the cube was beginning to shake violently. His stomach sank he realized the pillar probably wouldn't survive another power discharge from the cube. "It's too late…" he said in horror.

Rogers heard him. "No!" he said, in a voice that forbade argument. "It's not too late!" He seized a nearby scientist by the collar. "Where are those control cubes you were talking about?"

"They're not here!" the man replied, balking at him. "The power from the cube was being beamed to them by this machine!" He gestured to the control panel with the eight blinking lights. "At least until they were finished, and then the connection would be severed! But they never were finished because-"

"Then that means this machine is still connected to the cube!" Rogers interrupted. "You could use it to access the cube, right?"

"The cube is unstable!" the scientist said again. "You can't access it!"

"Watch me," Rogers said, putting him down. He seized the machine and pushed it roughly out of the way, exposing a variety of power cords and tubes protruding from the back of it. He found the one he wanted easily enough, a thick, clear tube that was glowing with the same bluish light the cube was emitting. Seizing it in both hands, he ripped it free from the machine, suddenly bathing them all in eerie blue light.

"Cap, what are you doing?" Red Skull heard Wasp say, but she was nearly drowned out by a sudden roar from behind them all.

"SHIT!" he heard Crossbones scream, just as the glass pillar shattered.

Blinding white light filled his vision, blotted out every other sight, every thought, every _sensation, _for an instant. Red Skull threw his hands in front of his face instinctively, trying to block out the sheer sensory overload, but the gesture was useless. All he knew for that instant was light and sound and terror.

Then, just as suddenly, the light was extinguished. Red Skull found himself lying on the floor, his hands still pressed tightly over his eyes. Beside him, he heard Crossbones groan, and then a voice that might have belonged to Sharon Carter shouting something in the background.

Marveling at the fact that he was still alive, Red Skull lowered his hands from his face and opened his eyes. The factory floor was lit up by a pulsing, bluish glow that cast twisted, unnatural shadows all around the room. All of the room's occupants had been knocked off their feet and were just now beginning to get up, just as he was. Several pieces of equipment had been knocked over as well, and there were pieces of "glass" from the containment pillar strewn everywhere. As for the cube itself…

It sat in its four-pronged metal stand, pulsing serenely with that same bluish glow. It was intact. And, more importantly, it now appeared to be stable.

"You okay, Boss?" said Crossbones. Red Skull looked up to see that his henchman had gotten to his feet and was now offering a hand to help him up.

Ignoring it, Red Skull stood up on his own. "I'm fine," he snapped, his attention still focused on the cube. Why had it not exploded? Had the scientists miscalculated? Was the cube stable after all? Was it complete? Was it-?"

"Cap!" Wasp's cry interrupted his train of thought and he turned around to see several of the Avengers had gathered around Rogers, who was now on his knees beside the Control Cube machine. He held the tube in his arms and his face was contorted in pain, as if he were struggling with all his might against a powerful force.

"Steve, let go of it!" Sharon Carter said in horror.

Captain America made no reply. He almost seemed as if he couldn't speak, as if his struggle required so much of his attention that he had none left to reply with.

Red Skull stepped closer, curious in spite of himself. He didn't know why the cube hadn't exploded, but he was certain the reason had something to do with Rogers's actions. He stepped into the crowd gathered around Rogers and actually pushed Thor aside, the Norseman's attention so captured by whatever Captain America was doing that he barely noticed. And then Red Skull got a good view of his old enemy, and he understood the reason for everyone's focus on the scene.

Rogers wasn't just holding the tube. One of his hands was actually _inside _it. And that hand was beginning to…blur, as if it were made of mist, mist that was gradually being pulled away down the tube and toward the cube itself.

"Rogers!" Red Skull heard himself gasp, feeling strangely horrified. "Rogers, drop it!"

But Captain America didn't drop it. He didn't even acknowledge any of them. He remained locked in that silent struggle, even as the bluish glow from inside the tube spread outward and enveloped his body, making his outline blur.

"Enough already!" Ironman shouted, starting forward. "If he won't let go, then we'll just have to make him do it!" He reached for the tube to pull it from Rogers's hands.

"No, stop!" a scientist cried. "You can't break the connection between them! I think….I think he's…._controlling it!"_

Red Skull let out a gasp and found it was echoed by everyone else in the room. "Controlling it?" he said in disbelief. "I thought you said it couldn't be done!"

"I thought it couldn't," the scientist replied. "But it appears he's using his willpower to stabilize it!"

"That means there's still time to blow it up!" Crossbones said. "Cappy's buying us some time! C'mon Boss, lets go find that bunker!"

Red Skull felt Crossbones take a hold of his shoulder and begin to pull him away from the crowd gathered around Rogers. But surprisingly, he felt himself fight against the man's grip, wanting to stay where he was. He looked at Captain America's misty form with mixed feelings. If they blew up the cube, they would blow up Rogers along with it. And wile Red Skull had always relished the idea of killing his most hated enemy, the thought of him going out like this, sitting there helplessly waiting for the end, was strangely…unsatisfying.

The others seemed equally reluctant to leave their comrade. "We can't just blow up the cube!" Sharon Carter protested. "Not without figuring out a way to save Steve first!"

"I don't think we can," Thor said in horror. "If we break the connection between them, he'll lose control of the cube, and it will destroy us all."

"So what are you saying? That we should just leave him in here to die?" Wasp snapped at the Norseman. "He just saved us all from being blown to bits! Are we supposed to repay him by running out on him when he's in trouble?"

"I think…..I think that's exactly what he wants us to do," said Ironman, and there was an uncharacteristic touch of grief in his voice. "I think he's trying to buy us some time, like Crossbones said."

"And not much time!" a scientist said, pointing at Rogers's now transparent form. "The cube is beginning to vaporize him!"

"No," said another scientist, sounding amazed. "It's not vaporizing him. It's…_incorporating _him!"

Red Skull looked back at Rogers and realized in surprise that the scientist appeared to be correct. The arm that Captain America had stuck inside the tube no longer seemed solid, and was instead a swirling mist of color. Color which was slowly being drawn down the tube toward the cube.

"I think you're right," another scientist said. "All this time, we thought the cube merely vaporized matter it came in contact with. But it appears it actually pulls such matter into itself instead."

"Like a black hole?" Wasp asked

The scientist shook his head. "No, it's the exact opposite, actually. A black hole is a massive concentration of matter in a small area. The Cosmic cube is a massive concentration of _energy."_

"So it's an anti-black hole?" one of the other scientists said. "Is such a thing even possible?"

"Who cares?" Crossbones suddenly shouted at the group of them. "Can't you guys discuss the theory of relativity and draw big math equations on your chalkboards and argue about anti-matter some other time? We're about to be blown to bits here! Cap's bought us some time to save our skins. Do you really want to waste it arguing about science shit?"

"He's right," Ironman told the group of them. "We have to destroy the cube while there's still time. Red Skull, Crossbones, you two go down to that bunker and hack into the computer that controls the explosives. The rest of us had better evacuate the building immediately!"

"I'm not leaving Steve," Sharon Carter said, her voice shaking.

"You can't help him," Thor told her gently. "All you would accomplish is to die alongside him. He wouldn't want that. We must leave, Sharon. Hurry!"

Red Skull reluctantly tore his eyes away from the dying Captain America, still finding it hard to believe that they really were simply going to leave him there to be destroyed with the Cosmic Cube. The Avengers were eternal optimists, always willing to try and find a solution even when the situation seemed hopeless. Yet even they had given up on saving Rogers.

Such a thing simply seemed….wrong.

"C'mon, Boss!" Crossbones shouted.

Red Skull moved. As hard as it was to admit, his henchman was right. There simply wasn't time to be indecisive. They had to act quickly. Even if it meant abandoning their comrade…or their arch enemy…without so much as a backward glance.

He and Crossbones descended the narrow, steep staircase the scientist had directed them to. It went down several levels, taking them to what appeared to be a sub-basement of some sort. The two of them located the bunker without much difficulty, and Crossbones opened the fortified, sliding metal door by pushing a button located beside it.

The lights came on automatically once they were inside, revealing a fairly spacious room that had a large computer screen and control panel along one wall. The control panel looked complicated, with hundreds of buttons and switches, and Red Skull knew that neither he nor Crossbones would be able to figure out how to turn the damned thing _on, _much less hack into the system, in the time they had. He could only hope that Machinesmith would be able to figure it out.

"Do you have the device?" Red Skull said to Crossbones.

"Sure, Boss," his henchman replied, pulling what looked like an elaborate flash drive out of his pocket. It had numerous tiny red lights lining its sides, and a small antenna on the end. "Here ya go," Crossbones said, tossing the device to him.

"Thank you," Red Skull said, catching the device. "Now, get out."

Crossbones balked. "_What?"_

"I said, 'get out!'" Red Skull snarled at the man, pulling out his gun.

"But Boss, I can't leave you!" Crossbones protested, looking almost pitifully confused.

"I don't need you for this," Skull growled at him. "I can do it on my own! Leave me!" He pointed the gun at the man for emphasis.

Crossbones looked at the gun apprehensively and backed up a few steps.

"That's it," Red Skull said quietly. "Get out of here. And once you're out the door, I suggest you get out of the building as soon as you can. I'm detonating the explosives as soon as I'm able. Understand?"

"Y-yeah," Crossbones said shakily. There was something in his eyes that reminded Red Skull of a lost dog. "I'll…I'll come find you when this is over, okay Boss?"

"Go," was all Red Skull said in reply.

Crossbones went. Red Skull pushed the button that controlled the door and was soon sealed up alone inside the room.

He sat down in the leather chair that was in front of the control panel and took out the device. A quick scan of the control panel revealed a docking station, and he inserted the device. Then, he pulled out his walkie-talkie. Praying that both devices would still work so far underground, he pressed the button that was tuned to Machinesmith's frequency.

"Machinesmith, this is Red Skull," he said. "Do you read me?"

Almost immediately, he heard the robotic man's worried voice coming from the walkie-talkie. "Sir, what happened?" Machinesmith asked him. "We lost communication with all three teams, as well as you! Were you unable to secure the factory?"

"Never mind that!" Red Skull told the man. "I need you to beam yourself into the control station I've inserted the docking device into! I need to use it to detonate some explosives! You have to find the program for that and bypass any security measures! And you have to do it quickly!"

"Of course, sir," came Machinesmith's confused voice. To Skull's relief, his lackey didn't ask any further questions, but instead got right to work. The tiny lights on the side of the docking device began to light up as Machinesmith beamed his consciousness into the machine.

Soon, the computer had turned itself on and Red Skull saw various windows open and close as Machinesmith sorted through the different programs on the computer. He found the one for the explosives quickly enough, opened the program, and then the screen sat idle as he must have worked on bypassing the password system.

Red Skull stared at the computer screen without really seeing it, wondering if Machinesmith would be able to access the explosives in enough time, wondering if Rogers could hold the cube steady for long enough. He wondered if Rogers was even still _there, _or if he had been pulled completely into the Cosmic Cube. If he hadn't yet been pulled inside, did that mean he would lose control once he had been? Was he still struggling the way he had been when Red Skull had last looked at him? Was he even still aware of what was going on? And if he was…

How alone did he feel, abandoned as he was by friend and enemy alike, to die in the middle of a ruined factory floor?

All too soon, the password screen disappeared, and words "explosives armed" appeared in its place. The red lights on the docking device winked out, one by one, as Machinesmith beamed back into his own body, back at the base.

"Sir?" came his lackey's voice over the walkie-talkie. "Sir, the explosives are ready. All you need to do is push the large blue button on the control panel to detonate them."

"All right," Red Skull heard himself say as he stared at the button he would use to destroy the cube. To save his own life.

To obliterate Captain America.

"Is there anything else, Sir?" Machinesmith asked.

"No," Red Skull managed to reply. His hand was beginning o shake, but he managed to pull the docking device free from the control panel and hurl it across the room. The walkie-talkie followed, hitting the far wall of the room hard and breaking into useless bits of plastic.

Now completely alone, just as Rogers was, Red Skull raised a trembling hand over the button. "I suppose I am in your debt now, Old Enemy," he said quietly, even though he knew Rogers could not hear him. It was strange…normally, he would have hated the idea of owing Captain America anything, but now, knowing he would never have to repay the man, simply because the man would no longer _exist, _filled him with distress. He had always factored Rogers into any situation in his mind, knowing as he did, that Captain America would always BE there, ready to stand against him. To think of the world without Captain America, to interact with it, to plan and plot and make decisions about the future, all without taking him into account, simply because Steve Rogers would no longer be anything but a fading memory….it was almost beyond his comprehension.

And even worse, it was so terribly _lonely…_

His vision blurred. His finger trembled as he held it over the button. And he began to panic as he realized the horrible truth.

He couldn't do it.

He couldn't live without Captain America.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

His finger trembled as he tried to force it down on the button. He had to press it. He _had _to. If he didn't, he would die right along with Captain America. Was that really preferable? Rogers was going to die either way. Wasn't he, Red Skull, surviving preferable to both of them dying? He wanted to live, didn't he? Wasn't a life without Captain America preferable to no life at all?

"I have to," he whimpered, glad there was no one in the room with him to hear how pathetic he sounded. "I have to. There's no other way."

He tried to push the button.

His finger would not move.

Tears finally welled up in his eyes and spilled down his cheeks. They were the first tears he could remember shedding since childhood, but he was too upset to even feel ashamed of them. He couldn't do it. He couldn't kill Captain America. He didn't want to die, but he didn't want to live without his enemy either. He was the only constant in Red Skull's life, the only thing Red Skull knew he could depend on. Without him, life would be empty. It would be meaningless. It would be nothing but hate and pain and suffering

Steve Rogers brought balance to Red Skull's wretched existence. He gave him something to fight against, something to justify the misery he put himself and others through….and something to keep that misery from completely winning out and destroying everything. Including Red Skull himself.

It was something he'd always known, deep down inside. That the evil he tried so hard to personify, and to inflict upon the world, would never make him happy. It was empty and meaningless. If he triumphed over everything good in the world, what was left? Nothing but emptiness. Oh, there were certainly the rewards such a triumph would bring, like power and decadence and physical pleasures….but he knew that such things were hollow. Temporary diversions that would eventually cease to be satisfying. It was the nature of things. The nature of evil.

The nature of his existence.

He could be no other way. He was ruined for any other purpose. From an early age, he had been molded into the most despicable man in the world, and he had spent his entire life trying to live up to that ideal. He could never be anything else but a monster. He had accepted that long ago.

But although he had to fight, he now understood that he had never really wanted to _win._

"Rogers…" His voice broke as he said his enemy's name, and he lowered his head into his hands as a strangled sob passed his lips. "Rogers….you can't leave me. Please…don't leave me alone."

_Skull?_

He jerked his head up in surprise, tears trickling freely down his cheeks. For a moment, it had sounded like Captain America had spoken to him. Like Captain America was in the room with him, standing right beside him.

"Rogers?" he said softly, despite knowing that he was alone, that whatever he had heard was merely a figment brought on by his rapidly deteriorating state of mind.

_Red Skull, why are you crying?_

"It _is _you…" he said, his voice a tiny, disbelieving whisper. He looked around the room like an idiot, but of course, Rogers was not there with him. He was alone.

_Can't you detonate the explosives? Is there something wrong?_

"Where are you?" Red Skull managed to say, still looking around as if Rogers was going to magically step out of thin air. "How are you speaking to me?"

_I'm using the cube. Now that I'm inside of it, I can control it a bit more. Not much, but a little. I still have to use most of my focus to hold it steady. But you were taking so long…I needed to know why. If there was a problem with the explosives. Are they not working? Can't you detonate them?_

"No….I….I can," Red Skull replied, looking down at the control panel in humiliation. "I can, but I….I…don't want to."

_Don't want to?_ Captain America sounded taken aback. _Why? It's the only way to save all of us! Including yourself! I don't expect you to care about the city, but I did expect you to want to preserve your own life!_

"What does my life matter now?" Red Skull said despairingly. "What is there to live for?"

_Ah… _Rogers sounded like he now understood. _The cube….you don't want to destroy it? I know how badly you wanted it, but it's broken beyond repair. It's not worth throwing your life away over, Skull. There will be others._

"But you won't be there to fight me for them!" he wailed in anguish, slamming his fist down on the control panel. "Don't you understand? I don't care about the damned cube!" He lowered his face into his hands, ashamed of having to confess to his enemy the humiliating truth he had only just come to understand himself. "I never did."

For a moment, Rogers did not reply, and Red Skull could only interpret his silence as stunned disbelief. More tears, these hot and stinging with shame, welled up in his eyes and burned searing trails down his cheeks.

_Skull...you don't want to kill me?_ Captain America finally replied. And while there was a bit of surprise in his voice, there was no judgment, for which Red Skull was grateful.

"No," he said, not raising his head from his hands. He didn't think Rogers could actually see him, but he still couldn't bear the thought of exposing his face like this, puffy and tear streaked like that of some blubbering child. "I don't want to kill you. You're the only good thing in my life. Without you, I'll be alone. All alone…with nothing but my hatred. I can't bear it. Please….please Rogers….you can't leave me. I don't want to be alone."

_Red Skull…_ came Roger's reply, and there was a surprising amount of gentleness in his voice. _You know I wouldn't leave you if I didn't have to. But I have to save the city. Thousands will die if we don't destroy the cube._

"The hell with them!" he shouted, finally raising his face from his hands. "The hell with all of them! They can all burn! You hear me! Let them burn!"

_Skull… _Rogers started to say, but Red Skull cut him off.

"NO!" he screamed, his anguish echoing in the small metallic room. "YOU CAN'T LEAVE ME, DAMN IT!"

There was no reply from Rogers. Maybe he didn't know what to say. Maybe there was nothing to say. But Red Skull could no longer contain his emotions. His misery, his terror, were so strong they threatened to overwhelm him. He lowered his face back into his hands and cried out the broken, desolate sobs of an empty man.

_I'm sorry…_ he finally heard Rogers say, and Skull could tell by his tone that he truly meant it. _I never meant to hurt you by doing this. Only to save you._

Red Skull snapped his head up. "Save me?" he whimpered, his eyes wide with disbelief. "You wanted to save me?"

_Of course I did, _Captain America said, sounding surprised that Red Skull hadn't recognized the obvious. _I wanted to save everyone. That includes you. I've never wanted you to die, Red Skull. Only to stop harming others._

Red Skull shook his head in exasperation. "Oh Rogers, you're optimistic to the point of foolishness. You know I can't change. Any more than you can. Neither of us can save the other right now." He sighed. "And yet…we don't stop trying, do we?"

_No, we don't,_ Captain America agreed. _Even now, I'm trying. Skull, if you don't want to be alone with your hatred, then stop hating._

"You make it sound so easy, Rogers," Red Skull said, with another shake of his head. "We both know it's too late for someone like me."

_It's never too late, _Captain America replied. _As long as you are alive, it's not too late. Let me save you, Skull. Let me save you, and give you another chance._

Red Skull's vision blurred once again as a new kind of tears stung his eyes. As useless as Captain America's kindness was, he couldn't help but be soothed by it nonetheless. "You always were my only comfort in this world, Old Enemy," he said softly. "I have to admit, it did sometimes make me feel better to know there was someone out there who believed the best about me, even when I didn't believe it myself."

_And will it also comfort you to know that you have already repaid that kindness?_ came Rogers's reply.

"What do you mean?" Red Skull asked in confusion.

_I thought I was going to die alone, Red Skull. Yet here I am, spending my last moments in the company of someone who genuinely cares for me. You don't know how much of a comfort that is to me._

Tears spilled down his cheeks once more, but Red Skull let them, no longer ashamed to cry in Captain America's presence. "I…I….Rogers, I…..."

_It's all right. _

Captain America's tone was so kind, so gentle, so nonjudgemental, that Red Skull found himself no longer afraid to say the terrible truth.

"Rogers….I…I love you," he said softly.

_I know._

The understanding and acceptance in the man's voice soothed him like nothing else ever had. "You're the only thing I've ever loved," he whispered.

_Then will you help me?_ came Captain America's voice. _Will you help me save you, and my friends, and everyone in the city? Please, it's what I want to do more than anything in the world. And when you love someone, you put their wants, their needs above your own. If you love me, help me save everyone. For once in your life, Red Skull….don't be selfish._

Too late, Red Skull realized he was trapped. Trapped between what he wanted to do…and what he had to do. Had to do because he owed it to Captain America. His enemy had made his horrific life worth living, had been there for him throughout everything, and had been put through so much suffering by Red Skull in repayment. If he owed anyone anything, Red Skull knew he owed Captain America.

"All right," he said softly, tears once again trickling down his cheeks at the finality of those words. "I'll do it. For you."

_Thank you…_

Red Skull nodded, trying to find comfort in the fact that this was what Rogers wanted. He raised his finger over the button once again.

_Go on… _came Captain America's gentle voice.

Still, Red Skull hesitated. "I'm scared, Rogers," he admitted. "I know I have to….but…I'm still scared."

_Don't be, _Captain America replied. _There's nothing to be afraid of. You trust me, don't you?_

Red Skull nodded. "You're the only man in the world I trust," he said softly.

_Then trust me now. It will be all right. I promise._

Red Skull nodded. "All right, Rogers. For you." He said again. He raised his finger over the button once more. This time, he knew he had to press it. There were no more protests, no more excuses. Only the inevitability of what had to be done.

Still, he longed to at least send his only loved one off with something. Some words of comfort, perhaps. But he had none. His knowledge of such things was nonexistent. There was only one thing he could say, useless as it was…

"I'm sorry," he said softly, meaning it more than he had ever meant anything.

He pressed the button.

/ / / / / / / / / / /

From their vantage point several blocks away, the Avengers watched as the A.I.M. factory was obliterated in a fiery roar. The explosion reduced the building to burning rubble, bathed the surrounding area in an angry glow, and deafened all those who witnessed it.

It also drowned out the grief of those, friend and enemy alike, who mourned a fallen hero.


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6

**Sorry for the delay…**

Nick Fury sat at his desk, head in hands, regarding how to word the report he needed to send soon, how to explain the dog's dinner he and the Avengers had made of the attempt to stop A.I.M. from completing the Cosmic Cube. True, they had succeeded in their objective…the cube had been destroyed before it could fall into the wrong hands. But most of the A.I.M. members had escaped, a massive explosion had devastated an entire city block and turned it into an inferno requiring the services of five different fire departments to put out…and the Avengers were down a man.

Captain America was dead.

They had inspected every inch of the rubble once it was safe to do so. They had found broken machinery, a few bodies of A.I.M. soldiers and Red Skull's henchman who had died prior to the explosion, even a few A.I.M. documents (although nothing of particular value), but no sign of the Cosmic Cube. Or Captain America.

In fact, the entire area that had once been the factory floor was empty except for ash, as if everything in the immediate vicinity of the cube had been vaporized.

Nick Fury sighed and shook his head. He mourned. The nation mourned. Already, the government bustled with activity, everyone busy with funeral arrangements, memorials (Fury himself was attending one such ceremony at the White House later that day), tributes, everything they could think of to honor the dead hero. And it wasn't just his celebrity status that fueled that activity, either. No, the surviving Avengers had made certain to let everyone know how Captain America had given his life to save the city, had remained behind in an exploding building to hold back the energy from the unstable Cosmic Cube. A great many people in New York City owed the Captain their lives, and they wanted to pay their respects to him in every way possible.

And all this, of course, only made the fact that it had been his and SHEILD's carelessness that had gotten the city into that situation in the first place even harder to explain.

They should have gotten more information. They should have been more cautious about charging into battle. They should have found and busted the A.I.M. cell within that factory before they could even begin work on the cube. There were a million things they could have or should have done to make this turn out differently.

And, of course, Nick Fury knew it was all bullshit. Another example of everyone who wasn't there playing "Monday Morning Quarterback." He and his organization were not about taking crazy risks. They had found out as much information as possible, had attacked as soon as they could and had done everything in their power to stop A.I.M. and keep the city safe. It was just that…sometimes, your best wasn't enough. Sometimes, things happened that were beyond your control. Sometimes villains simply had unknown aces up their sleeves or Murphy's Law prevailed and a situation went south too quickly to be controlled. Sometimes, things just went to hell and it wasn't anyone's fault except that of the criminals who started this whole messy business.

But such explanations, true as they might be, weren't likely to fly when you had a dead national hero on your hands.

A buzz from his secretary shook him out of his fog. "Sir, Tony Stark is here to see you."

Nick Fury scowled slightly and repressed a sigh. "Send him up," he told his secretary, pushing aside the report he was still no closer to completing. Stark was the last man in the world he wanted to see right now, but he knew that the matter Stark wanted to see him about had to be dealt with eventually. Even if doing so was even more unpleasant than writing a report trying to explain the death of Captain America.

Nick Fury sighed again, thinking of the unpleasant little surprise they had discovered during their sweep of the ruined factory, a surprise that was currently being held in the most secret, maximum security cell on the premises. They had told everyone that they hadn't found any survivors in the factory when they had searched it, and while this was indeed true, it certainly wasn't the _whole _truth.

No, the survivor they'd found had been _underneath _the factory.

The surviving Avengers told him about the bunker, of course, and that the Red Skull and Crossbones had gone down there to detonate the factory before the Cube could reach its critical meltdown point, but all of them had expected both supervillain and henchman to have long since fled once the fire had been contained. And while it was true that there had been no sign of Crossbones when they'd gone down to investigate, the Red Skull was…still there.

He hadn't been trapped…no, the bunker had survived the blast and still been completely operational when they'd discovered it. The SHIELD agents had been able to enter it by simply pushing a button. But once inside, they had been surprised to find its original occupant curled into a ball underneath the control panel, weeping softly. And try as they might, they had been unable to get any sort of a response from him. No matter what they said or did, he didn't acknowledge them in the slightest, and, in fact, seemed to be completely unaware of their presence.

Nick Fury didn't know what had happened in that room underneath the factory, but whatever it was, it had pushed the Red Skull into a state of complete catatonia. And now he was lying silent and unresponsive, in a cell right there at SHIELD headquarters, waiting for them to decide what to do with him.

Of course, Nick Fury knew what _should _be done with him, and that was to turn him over to be tried for his various war crimes and other terrorist activities he had attempted over the years. Not only was it the proper thing to do, but, Fury had to admit, it would definitely make his own life easier too. If they could publically admit they had captured the Red Skull, and publically allow him to be tried and sentenced for his various horrific crimes, then it would certainly improve SHIELD's image…and Fury's own.

Right now, the public only saw a bungled operation. One that had resulted in the death of a national hero. But if they could show that it had also resulted in the capture of a hated supervillain, specifically, Captain America's own nemesis, the entire operation would look much better. Fury was fairly certain they could pin the bulk of the blame for the incident on the Red Skull as well. It wouldn't be too hard of a lie for the public to swallow….after all, the Red Skull was much better known than A.I.M. and much more closely associated with using the Cosmic Cube for destructive purposes. If that path was taken, Captain America's sacrifice would be much more palatable. He had not died stopping a bungled situation, he had given his life to stop his most hated enemy from destroying the city…and had caused that enemy to finally be brought to justice in the end.

It was an easy solution, a simple one, and one that Nick Fury knew he likely wasn't going to be allowed to use. Because in the world of high-ranking military men and powerful politicians, simple solutions were a rarity. There were always other factors that needed to be considered. Unpleasant as they were…

The door of his office opening noisily and without so much as a warning knock heralded the arrival of Tony Stark. Nick Fury looked at the man with misgiving. He wore a wrinkled button-up shirt and a pair of dark blue jeans. Hardly appropriate attire for visiting the head of SHIELD, but then, given the situation, he supposed Stark's distraction from formality could be excused. And his eyes looked bleary and red-rimmed. Again, hardly surprising, given the situation (Stark and Rogers may have been two very different people, but they had remained steady comrades and friends for most of their Avengers's careers), but Nick Fury couldn't help wondering if grief was the only source of that redness, or if Stark had been imbibing in the vice he was famous for.

Fury almost sighed. It was certainly a foolish question. With Stark and liquor, it wasn't so much a matter of "if" as a matter of "how much," and expecting him to be careful while dealing with the grief of losing a close friend was probably asking a bit too much. Still, he hoped the man could at least manage to be professional during this meeting.

"What can I do for you, Stark?" he asked, trying not to roll his eyes. Another foolish question. They both knew what Stark wanted. Still, Fury was unwilling to dispense with formalities entirely. Managing to remain professional was a small consolation in the middle of this debacle, but it was still something.

"It's about the Red Skull," Stark replied, apparently wasting no time in getting to the heart of the matter. "I need to know what you're planning on doing with him."

Fury pressed his lips together, hoping the action would keep him from scowling. "We're going to turn him over to the International Criminal Court," Fury told the man, as if stating the obvious. "Isn't that what's usually done with captured Nazis?"

"Spare me the bullshit, Fury!" Stark suddenly snappd, his red-rimmed eyes narrowing in irritation. "We both know protocol isn't something that matters much, this high up the chain."

Maybe it didn't, but Fury wasn't going to acknowledge that fact. It gave him the only bit of control he still felt like he had in the middle of this mess. He wasn't going to simply let Stark strong-arm his way into getting what he wanted. Let him work for it. Let him come up with a convincing case.

"Calm down," Fury said firmly. "I know these past couple of days haven't been easy, but I still think you can keep your composure while you're in my office. Now," he continued, figuring it was time to stop beating around the bush, "did you have an alternative course of action in mind?"

"We need to keep him under our control," Stark immediately answered. "We can't risk turning him over to the International Criminal Court and losing control over what happens to him. We can't risk letting them lock him away where we can't have access to him or worse, executing him. He's too valuable!"

"Valuable?" Fury asked, doing his best to sound skeptical. "How is a catatonic megalomaniac valuable to us?" As if he didn't know. Still, if Stark wanted to take his prize away, let him work for it.

"He won't stay catatonic forever," Stark replied.

"What makes you so certain?" Fury said. "None of the doctors we've had looking at him have been able to get any sort of a response out of him." Which was true, but misleading. They had given him a rudimentary medical evaluation, but it wasn't like they'd had the top psychiatrists in the nation doing their best to break him out of his catatonia. There had been more important things to worry about besides Red Skull's mental health. As far as Fury was concerned, the piece of shit could remain a glorified mannequin until they decided what to do with him.

"Because the Red Skull can't even stay _dead _for very long," Stark replied. "He always comes back, even when we're certain he's been killed. The bastard's worse than a cockroach." Stark shook his head, looking almost amazed. "If drowning and being vaporized and being shot and even dying of _old age _can't keep him down for long, I don't think a mental breakdown can either."

"And if he _does _recover, what exactly are you planning on doing with him?" Fury asked. "Locking him up in Stark Tower and charging admission for the public to take a look at the caged-up Nazi supervillain?" Actually, that did sound a bit like some sensationalist scheme Stark might dream up after one too many vodka tonics. He probably should stop giving the man ideas.

"Quit playing dumb, Fury," Stark said quietly, his voice almost a growl. Fury raised an eyebrow slightly, looking at the man with a trifle more respect. So he could see right through the ruse, could he? Perhaps he _had _had enough sense to go easy on the liquor before this conversation. "You know why I want him. And why you should give him to me. It's in both our best interest. It's in _everyone's _best interest, for that matter."

"Yes, he's bound to have knowledge of the criminal underworld that we can use," Fury admitted. "But so do a lot of the criminals we catch. I don't know that that's worth more than the good PR we'd lose by not turning him in…or the risk we'd take by keeping him under your jurisdiction." He actually didn't mean that as a slam against Stark….Red Skull was probably more secure in Stark Tower than in most prisons, but he was an enormous risk wherever he was, especially considering his unlikely escapes in the past. If Stark wanted to take it was a slam, however, Fury certainly didn't mind.

To his mild annoyance, Stark didn't take the bait. "We both know he's far more valuable than any underling you've captured in the past. He's not only the head of his organization, he's the head of one of the top criminal organizations in the world. He can give us far more information than anyone else in your custody ever has. But it's not just information in general I want out of him…it's a specific type of information."

Fury sighed. He knew it would come to this. "And that would be?"

"He found out A.I.M. was creating a new Cube, even before we did," Stark replied. "He must have extensive information about their activities. There's bound to be information our informants don't have. You know we need that information, if we're going to have any hope of tracking A.I.M. down."

Fury knew. They had not found a single A.I.M. member alive, and they had found very few of them dead, for that matter. Most of the bodies they had discovered had been Red Skull's henchman. True, the Chairman had died, but they both knew that there were several other members of A.I.M.'s Board of Directors. Not to mention the financial sponsor who had arranged all this. The mysterious "Baron" the Chairman had mentioned. Fury knew of a few criminals who went by the title (Baron Strucker and Baron Helmut Zemo being the best known), but nothing he'd seen suggested any of them had close ties to A.I.M. Perhaps it was another baron, or perhaps "Baron," was simply an alias of some new criminal they'd never faced before. With no A.I.M. soldiers or scientists available for questioning, they had very few leads.

Fury sighed again. He knew whatever leads they could find would be important too. Since most of A.I.M.'s leadership remained intact, it was very possible they might try to create another cube. Especially since MODOK had also been missing when they'd searched the wreckage. Fury didn't know if the creature had escaped or if A.I.M. had recaptured him, but if there was any chance it was a the latter, they were in no position to sit back cooling their heels.

"You know I'm right," Stark prompted him. Fury realized he'd let his silence stretch out for too long.

"I know," he said, still not sounding happy about it. "Still, I can't make you any promises. It's going to be difficult to arrange this. I'll have to get permission-"

Stark cut him off with a dismissive wave of his hand. "Bullshit, Fury. I know you haven't told a soul that he's here. Because you knew something like this might happen. You knew we might need him. No one who has any authority to stop you knows he's alive. I'd bet my company."

"Yeah, and even if that were the case, what makes you think I'd turn him over to you?" Fury grumped, hoping he didn't sound quite as sulky as he felt.

"Because you wouldn't be turning him over to me," Stark replied. "You'd be turning him over to the Avengers. He'd be in the custody of some of the greatest heroes in the world. And you could rest assured that not only would they keep him safe, they'd also use any information he gave them responsibly."

Fury pondered that. It was true they needed any information the Red Skull could give them if they were to have any hope of finding A.I.M quickly. It was also true that they couldn't keep him here at SHIELD. It was too risky that he'd be discovered and then Fury would lose custody of him. As high ranking as he was, there were always those members of the government who outranked him…or who were powerful enough to try muscling in on his business regardless of who had a more impressive title. He needed to keep the Red Skull someplace away from SHIELD…but where he'd still have access. And what safer place than with the Avengers? Stark Tower was practically a fortress, Stark's relationship with SHIELD meant that Fury would likely still be privy to any information they got out of the Skull, and the people who were most likely to be the ones to find and face A.I.M. again-the Avengers-were the ones with direct access to any help the Red Skull could provide them. It did seem to be the best solution, given the circumstances.

"You know I'm right," Stark said again, apparently growing bored with having to go thirty seconds without massaging his ego.

"That still doesn't mean you're getting him," Fury said shortly. Actually it did, but Fury still refused to roll over like a beaten dog. Stark's smug mannerisms annoyed him on the best of days, and on a day like today, it was all he could do to keep from picking up one of the brass paperweights on his desk and hurling it at the drunken playboy's head. "You're asking me to give up an extremely valuable prisoner. Maybe one of the only things that might help repair SHIELD's reputation. If you think I'm just handing him over to you because you asked nicely, you're crazy. What are you offering in return?"

"I'd think knowing that you're helping stop A.I.M. from conquering the world would be compensation enough," Stark said. When Fury remained silent, Stark rolled his eyes with a snort. "Of course, if it's not, Stark Industries is always working on new weapons, computer technology, surveillance technology…al sorts of goodies the head of SHIELD might be interested in. Pick your favorite and I'll draw up an exclusive contract between our two organizations."

"Deal," Fury said quickly. Stark had been right that stopping A.I.M. would have been enough to make Fury to turn the Skull over to the Avengers, but that didn't mean he was above bluffing a bit to try and get something else out of the deal. New weapons or tech weren't going to do much to compensate for PR nightmare he still faced, but they were better than ending up with nothing but an empty cell down in the basement.

"Good," Stark said with a nod. "Have your secretary set up an appointment so we can draw up a contract. And I'll be in touch with you about transporting him to Stark tower. We'll have to come up with a way to get him there that won't arouse suspicion. In the meantime-"

"…in the meantime, I'll release a report saying we've found his body in the wreckage," Fury finished for Stark.

Stark nodded. "Only those of us who are in on the deal can know he's alive. To the rest of the world, the Red Skull is officially dead."

"Agreed," Fury said. "And you'd better make sure it stays that way."

Stark nodded, then glanced toward the clock on the far wall. "Well, I suppose I'd better get going and leave you to your reports. I've got some place I've gotta be in an hour."

"Oh?" Fury asked, although there was no need. He knew.

Stark's face clouded slightly. "Yeah. Memorial service for a friend."

Fury suddenly found himself giving a sympathetic look to the man he despised so much. For all their mutual dislike, the two of them weren't completely at odds. They still had some things in common. Like shared comrades…and shared grief.

"Yeah," Fury said, allowing a touch of sadness to enter his tone. "Me too."


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7**

Sharon Carter trudged up the last few steps of the staircase that was located near a set of unused maintenance rooms on the third floor of Stark Tower, wondering for the fifth time in as many minutes why exactly she was doing this. She hadn't been able to explain just what she wanted out of this visit, not to Tony Stark who had arranged it, not to Nick Fury, who had allowed it, and even worse, not to herself, who had practically begged for it. There was nothing this visit could accomplish. There was nothing the Red Skull could say to her to bring her any sort of piece of mind.

There was nothing he could say to her period, actually. Or to anyone else for that matter. He was still catatonic. Which made her desire to see him even more inexplicable. Even more ridiculous.

Still, here she was, touching her thumb to a small keypad beside a thick metal security door. There was a soft_ beep _as her thumbprint was scanned, and a moment later a heavy _click _as the door unlatched itself. She pushed her way inside and headed toward a single elevator door at the end of a short hallway.

The last week or so had been a blur, the reality of Steve's death unable to sink in because of how busy she was. Memorial services, friends and relatives stopping by to see how she was doing, working with SHIELD to try and find the whereabouts of A.I.M…all of these things had helped to push the grief away into the background where she wanted it. True, she had been sad, very sad, in fact, but it had been bearable. Bearable because it felt finite. It was a part of the mourning period, just as the busyness was. And she knew that period would not last forever. It would end, and a strange, twisted logic told her that her sadness would end with it.

And maybe it would. Perhaps sadness _was _fleeting, but she knew grief was not. Grief was patient and grief was tenacious. Grief could wait until things went back to normal. The public would eventually get back to their lives, relatives would stop checking up on her with such frequency, potential leads would fizzle out and work at SHEILD would come to a standstill…and still, Steve Rogers would not come through the door and kiss her. Steve Rogers would not hold her in his arms and run his fingers through her hair. Steve Rogers would never come to her and sheepishly admit that he was having trouble programming the TV to record her favorite program for later tonight, his honest, bewildered and slightly vulnerable expression causing her to forget about the teasing she'd had planned…well, _most_ of it anyway.

He was dead and the world was moving on, leaving her and a handful of others to suffer at the cruel and patient hands of grief. And even the others who suffered with her…well, she knew that, as sad as they were, their grief didn't approach the level of her own. Steve had been their friend. He had not been their entire world.

But he _had _been her world, and she would have to spend the rest of her life trying to accept that she would never see him again, while grief shadowed her like a persistent ghost, biding its time and waiting for the right moment (the favorite song on the radio, seeing the kids-painful reminders of the children they would never have-playing on the sidewalk) to swoop in and start her struggle anew. Right now, the thought was almost unbearable.

_Maybe that's why I'm doing this, _she mused to herself as she approached the elevator. _To prolong the "sadness phase." To put off the grief stage a little bit longer. _There was nothing else to distract her…and no new bits of information about his death for her to digest. Nothing to keep the world from going back to normal by letting Steve's death become just another unpleasant fact of life.

Of course, if that _was _the case, it made her coming here even more useless and ridiculous. Even on the off-chance that Red Skull did magically recover and tell her about Steve's final moments, then what? She'd be able to chew on that information for a few days, process it, and then…things would go back to normal. She was only delaying the inevitable by coming here.

She stopped in front of the elevator, looking at the numerical keypad it had beside it in place of regular buttons. Letting out a soft sigh, she reached into her pocket and pulled out the post-it note she'd written the twenty-digit passcode on. It was a special one that Tony had added into the system just for her, to be used only for today. It would make the elevator take her to the relevant floor…and that floor alone. No chance of her stopping on any others and seeing things her prying eyes weren't meant to see. Tony Stark and his precious little secrets…

As she started punching in the code, she had to remind herself not to be an ass. Tony had arranged this for her, hadn't he? Even though it was inconvenient for him and she couldn't exactly say why she had wanted to go, he had gone out of his way to set this up for her. She supposed she ought to be a little more grateful to him. It was just…a habit for her to grumble about him. Stark was a very polarizing person. Some people were wonderfully charmed by his mannerisms, while others found him phony and trusted him about as far as they could throw him. Sharon herself-hell, practically all of SHIELD for that matter-fell into the latter category, but she'd met plenty of people who were in the former. Everyone seemed to have a side to choose…except for Steve, of course.

He had been too principled to fall for Tony's schmoozing bullshit, but too good-hearted not to see the decent person Tony tried to be underneath it all. Because of this, the two had been good friends, even if they often clashed and their friendship had had its rocky moments. She wondered if that was the reason Tony had been so affected by his death, much more than any of the other Avengers. He'd lost one of the few people who treated him like a friend instead of Tony the Charming Playboy or Tony the Secretive Schemer.

She sighed again as she finished punching in the code, feeling even sadder than before. As painful as this must have been for Tony, she still envied him, in a way. After all, Steve had been an important person in Stark's life, but not _the _most important person. He still had it easier than her, even if it was only slightly.

The elevator doors slid open with a quiet whisper, and she got on. Inside, there were no buttons to press, and no lights above the doors that marked off the floors as the elevator passed them. Just a blank little room to wait in as she was whisked to the appropriate floor.

A gray-haired, pleasant faced nurse was there to greet her when the doors slid open again. Nearby was a burly male orderly, who said nothing but stood aside and kept a close watch on the proceedings. She supposed he was there in case she got it in her head to take some sort of revenge on their oh-so-valuable prisoner. He needn't have bothered, as far as she was concerned. As much as she loathed the Red Skull, he hadn't been responsible for Steve's death. Oh, she was sure he'd practically died of joy when he'd obliterated Steve along with the unstable Cosmic Cube, but what he'd done had still been a necessary evil rather than a direct act of malice. It was A.I.M. who had been to blame, although even they hadn't intended for this to happen. The lack of a clear individual to direct her anger at was certainly unsatisfying, but it also meant that they didn't have to worry about her trying to smother the Red Skull with a pillow, either.

Still, she knew that Tony Stark thought it was better to be safe than sorry. So she allowed them to pat her down for weapons before leading her down the hallway to the farthest room on the left. Once there, the nurse pressed a series of buttons on another keypad, and a moment later, the door clicked open.

"Take all the time you need," the nurse said kindly as she opened the door for Sharon. "Press the call button next to the door when you're ready to leave and someone will let you out." Then she shut the door and Sharon was alone in the room with her lover's arch-enemy.

Her first thought was how…normal everything looked. She had been imagining him hooked up to all sorts of machines to help him breathe, eat, drink, etc. Machines that monitored his vital signs and made sure his heart didn't suddenly stop. But there was nothing. No IV tubes, no hissing respirator, no beeping monitor. Just him, lying in a hospital bed with his eyes closed. If she didn't know better, she would have thought he was simply taking a nap.

An unpleasant nap, she was forced to concede, as she looked at his face. His expression was anything but peaceful. His features were molded into an expression of deep sorrow, as if he were having a series of unpleasant dreams, each more miserable than the last. It was very…jarring, she had to admit. An expression like that didn't really seem to belong on the Red Skull's face. Until now, she might have even thought he was incapable of looking sad. To her, his face had always seemed to be a rigid mask, one of careful control and distant contempt, one that would never allow any of the "weaker" emotions like sadness to show through. A mask that had become so familiar that it had become impossible to remove.

Still, at least he wasn't crying. She'd heard that he'd been weeping silent tears for the better part of a day when they first found him. No one knew why. The best guess that anyone had been able to come up with was that the explosion caused by the Cube's destruction had somehow damaged his mind, driving him insane. Well, more insane anyway. Enough to render him an invalid.

As she sat down beside the bed, a number of rather distressing questions suddenly assaulted her mind at once. Did someone have to change his bedpans? Give him baths? Wipe drool off his chin? Spoonfeed him pureed meals?

Once, it might have been satisfying, perhaps even comical, to think of the most despicable man in the world being reduced to a helpless invalid. But now, as she looked at his despairing face and inhaled the scent of a sickroom all around her, the only thing she could feel was grief. Because all she could see lying in front of her was yet more proof of how much Steve's death had changed her world. The proud, haughty Red Skull had been reduced to a nursing-home resident. And even knowing how much he deserved such a fate, and how much better off the world would be with him as a vegetable, she felt no satisfaction out of seeing him this way…only a baffling sense of loss.

Nothing in the world was the same anymore. Not even Steve's arch-enemy. He was fading away as if he were acknowledging the fact that he didn't belong in a world without Captain America.

And for a moment, for a brief, almost irrational moment, Sharon Carter wondered if _that _was the true reason for the despairing look on the man's face…and for his silent but uncontrollable weeping earlier.

Did he despair because his world had been turned upside down the way hers had been? Did he weep because he had lost someone as important to him as that same man was to her?

It was nonsense…it was foolishness, and yet, looking at his sorrowful expression, a part of her was suddenly sure that it was completely correct.

She suddenly had her face buried in her hands, fighting tears for all she was worth. Because the thought that Steve's arch-enemy could mourn him as deeply, of not more so, than she could, was truly a testament to the kind of man Steve had been. And that only made her loss even more bitter, her pain even more intense, the fact of losing him seem even more unfair. She realized that she was losing the battle against the incoming floodwaters, but it suddenly didn't matter so much anymore. Because the Skull was not aware of her, and even if he had been, she suddenly felt like this man, this twisted, evil, despicable man, probably understood her grief more than anyone else could.

She cried for Steve, finally really allowed herself to feel the anguish she had been trying so hard to put off. She cried with the agony of losing him forever, with the anger at the world for taking him from her, with the unfairness of such a good person being denied his chance for a happy and rewarding life. She cried for Steve and for herself, having to live without him, and for the rest of his friends and for the world, now lacking such a noble protector, and perhaps even a bit for the wretch who lay before her, now nothing more than an empty husk, his purpose for existing gone.

She didn't know how long she let herself cry, but the staff in this area didn't disturb her. She was sure they were monitoring the room via video surveillance, but they had apparently decided that, as long as she wasn't harming him, she was free to blubber at the Red Skull's bedside to her heart's content.

No, what stopped her was the barest whisper of a touch on her arm, just the slightest sensation of fingers on flesh, something she might normally have mistaken for a slight breeze or a bit of cobweb, had she been sitting anywhere but where she was.

She snapped her head up in surprise, telling herself that it was a nurse or security guard, come to gently shake her out of her misery and tell her it was time to go, but she knew, even before she opened her eyes, that it was _him._

He had his hand on her arm.

_"Skull?" _she gasped in astonishment, too frozen to even bother to wipe the tears off her cheeks. Or maybe she just didn't want to risk knocking his tenuous hold loose. He was reaching across the six inches of air that separated her from his bedside, his fingers weakly curled around her wrist. His eyes were still closed, his head still lying back to face the ceiling, but now she could see wet trails on his cheeks, glinting in the bright overhead lighting. He was crying again.

"Skull?" she whispered again. She leaned forward slightly to get a better look at his face and the movement caused him to lose his weak grip on her wrist. She gasped as if she'd accidentally knocked over an expensive porcelain vase and caught his hand before it could fall limply beside the bed.

She sat there for several long moments, awkwardly holding his hand and looking at his tear-streaked but still face. And trying to comprehend.

For a brief moment, he had awoken. Not only that, but he had reached out to her. He had touched her, as if something had drawn him. How? Why?

What was going on?

Was he faking? Perhaps he wasn't catatonic at all, but was simply trying to make the world think he was in order to avoid punishment. But if so, why hadn't the medical staff here been able to see through it? Why would he give himself away by revealing his awareness to her? Why the tears? Why had he reached for her?

But if he wasn't faking, then why had he awoken? Was he reacting to her presence? No, not her presence, she amended. Her…tears. He hadn't done anything other than lie there until she'd started crying.

She didn't understand…

Or at least, she tried to tell herself that. Another part of her realized with a sinking sensation that perhaps she understood all too well.

After all, if her earlier suspicions were correct, than perhaps Steve's death had left the Red Skull so broken that he'd retreated into his own mind, the world outside too painful to live in anymore. And nothing could draw him out of that hidden place, back into the world of pain…except perhaps, the presence of someone who understood. Someone whose grief matched his own.

Someone who made him feel less alone in his suffering.

Her stomach churned with an almost instinctive revulsion at the idea that she and the Red Skull were alike in anyway, and it almost heaved up its contents at the thought that he might have, even for a moment, viewed her as a kindred spirit…and someone to reach out to. She almost hurled his hand away from her own in disgust, but forced herself to place it gently beside him on the bed instead. There was no sense in having the staff throw her out for being abusive to their precious patient.

In fact, there was no sense in any of this. There was no sense in being in this room at all. He couldn't tell her anything, and even if he could, she was no longer sure she wanted to hear it. She was suddenly afraid that whatever she heard might make her sick.

But she didn't get up. Freedom from this foul man was only a short walk and the press of a button away, but she stayed fixed to her chair, unable to force herself to get up. Unable to tear her eyes away from the Red Skull's despairing face.

She realized, almost in horror, that while she wanted to leave this place, she also wanted to stay. And the desire to stay was by far the stronger of the two.

Why? Why did she want to stay? Why was she afraid to just walk out?

Could it be the idea that once she left, she would almost certainly never be allowed back in again?

Maybe, as much as she hated the thought, there was a part of her that was _also _comforted by the idea that someone shared the intensity of her grief. And if she left now, she would never see him again. She would be left all alone with the pain once again.

Even as much as the idea of being like the Red Skull revolted her, even as much as the idea of finding comfort in his presence made her want to sick up, the idea of going back to suffering alone was still worse.

She lowered her face back into her hands. It was all so awful. She honestly didn't know if she regretted coming here or if she was glad about it. It was a strange sensation, feeling both disgusted and comforted. She almost thought she could have envied the Skull, being able to retreat into the blackness of his mind rather than face this awful whirlwind of emotions.

But she knew such a thing could never be an option for her. She couldn't allow herself to be so weak and selfish. There were people in the world who still needed her, a job she still had to do. And, of course, she knew Steve wouldn't have wanted that for her.

_He wouldn't have wanted it for either of us, _she suddenly thought, raising her head from her hands to look at the Red Skull's empty face. And it was true. Steve had always been compassionate, able to feel pity for all his enemies. He hated seeing them suffer due to their own actions almost as much as he hated seeing other suffer due to those actions. It would have pained him to see the Red Skull reduced to this state. True, he wouldn't have wanted the Skull to be running around harming others and putting the world in danger either, but still…

"He wouldn't want you to be this way…" she whispered softly to him, wondering if he could hear her.

He gave no indication that he could, but the last remnants of the tears drying on his cheeks reminded her that he _had _been conscious, or at least somewhere close to it, for a brief moment. Perhaps he was still there, hovering near the line that separated the waking world from the dream. Perhaps her words could get through somehow.

Of course, she knew she should wonder why she suddenly wanted him to hear her. Why she suddenly hoped her words could help, even if it was only a bit. But she didn't wonder. She realized that she knew. She suddenly understood.

Steve would have wanted her to try and help him.

"He wouldn't want you to be this way," she said again, louder this time.

Again, no response. But she thought she saw his face…change. It was almost imperceptible, but his expression seemed to change from sadness to…uncertainly. Perhaps even fear. In fact, the look on his face reminded her of someone who was hopelessly lost…and terrified by the prospect. In fact, looking at his anxious expression, she could almost hear him saying to her in a small, frightened voice:

_I don't know how to be…_

This time she didn't try to push away the feeling of pity, finally understanding just how much Steve's death had turned his world upside-down. It had left him in limbo, unable to move forward, because he didn't know what to do. He didn't know who to be. Captain America's death, had left him unable to be the Red Skull, but he had been the Red Skull for so long that he didn't know how to be any other way. No wonder he looked so lost.

Gently, she reached out, covering his hand with her own. She thought she felt his fingers move slightly, but that could have just been a flight of fancy. She tightened her grip anyway, as if acknowledging the movement and looked into his despairing face, wondering what to do. What could she possibly say to give him a purpose again?

Should she tell him to be a good person? Was that even possible anymore? Honestly, the concept of telling the Red Skull to be a good person seemed almost absurd. And not just because of how evil he had spent his life being, but also because such advice seemed useless to someone like him. The concept of "good" was likely an almost foreign concept to someone like him. Telling him to be "good," was about as useful as telling him to be a televangelist. He probably wouldn't have the slightest clue where to even _begin_.

She signed softly, wishing _she _knew where to begin. This was all so foreign to her. She knew Steve would have wanted her to try, but…

And with that thought, the idea suddenly hit her like a thunderclap.

"Why don't you try to be the person Steve would have wanted you to be?" she told him. Even if the concept of "good" was fleeting, she knew that the concept of Steve's moral compass was not. Given how long and how often the two of them had butted heads over the years, she would have bet that the Red Skull knew Steve's moral compass better than anyone.

The Skull still said nothing, still didn't open his eyes, but she felt his fingers flex against her own again, she was suddenly sure he heard her. Knowing now that she had his attention, she went on.

"If you really did…care…..for him," she forced herself to say. God, it sounded so _absurd _when said aloud. "Then maybe….this can be your way of honoring him." She almost felt as though _she _were honoring him, with her awkward attempts to reach out to his former enemy. The thought actually….made her smile a bit. Maybe it wasn't bad advice for either of them. "I think…I think it would have…made him happy to know he was finally able to help you, even if it was only as an ideal to live up to."

Suddenly feeling a sense of peace, Sharon Carter gave the wretched man's hand a final squeeze and then got up. She finally felt as though she didn't need to hide from her grief anymore. As if she finally had the strength to face it…and to continue on. To let Steve's memory be something that raised her up and pushed her forward, instead of something that held her back. Perhaps by trying to help the Red Skull, she had helped herself as well.

She pushed the button beside the door and left with only a quiet "thank you" when it was opened by the nurse. She heard a bit of commotion behind her, people talking excitedly in the background, but she didn't turn around. She guessed they had noticed that the Skull had reacted to her presence and were now rushing around preparing to run a plethora of tests on him. She left them to it. She had done what she could for him and now she could leave the rest of it in the hands of others.

She punched the code to call the elevator and was soon on her way out of the building. Although she still certainly couldn't claim to be _happy_, she did at least finally feel a peaceful sense of acceptance. She knew she was finally ready to face the rest of her life.

It was what Steve would have wanted.

/ / / / / / / / / / / /

Tony Stark sat at his desk, trying to fight off a rather nasty headache. He already felt like Death warmed over, and the day wasn't even close to being over. He felt an intense longing for the bottle of vodka hidden in his lower desk drawer, but forced himself to leave it where it was. He didn't want to drink yet. Not this early in the afternoon. The past week had been Hell for him, and he had been imbibing far more than usual. He grieved terribly, but he also had a hundred projects to work on, a company to run and the Avengers to lead, and he had to at least _try _to stay functional for most of the day.

A buzz from his secretary startled him out of his self-reflection. He pressed the button on his intercom in irritation, wondering what new crisis had popped up to demand his attention.

"Mr. Stark, you have a call on line eight," said his secretary.

"Yeah, thanks," he said dully, looking at the now flashing light on his phone with misgiving.

He knew where calls on that line came from. The medical center on Floor Thirteen. Hidden away, like everything else on that floor was. The perfect place to stash a secret and valuable patient.

He had almost forgotten that today was the day he'd allowed Sharon Carter to "visit" the Red Skull. It was an arrangement that he had had his misgivings about, but he felt he owed it to Steve's memory to let his girl get her closure. He had hoped that Sharon would understand the risks he was taking when he allowed this visit, and the importance of keeping the Red Skull safe, but apparently he had been too optimistic and there had been an incident. He could only hope that she hadn't harmed the Skull in any way.

Knowing he had to face this new problem eventually, he stabbed the button for line eight and said "What happened?"

"Mr. Stark, there's been a new development," came the nurse's voice from the other end of the line.

A "development?" The staff in the medical center certainly knew how to pussy-foot around. Making a face, Tony pulled open the bottom desk drawer, deciding that today, he could make an exception to the "No Booze This Early in the Afternoon" rule. "What happened?" he said again.

And then he froze, his hand still on the handle of the desk drawer, all thoughts of alcohol gone. The nurse only spoke two sentences, but they were enough to stop him in his tracks.

"Mr. Stark, he's awake. And he is asking for you."


End file.
